A Letter To Fellow Cast and Crew of The Glass Menagerie:

I am sorry. There is something here that must be said, something beyond these words, to each of you individually. But it is late, and while you all deserve a lengthy, personalized letter of your own, and while there is one, somewhere, inside of me for each of you, I cannot find the means or ability to do you all justice. Just know, please, that there is something in me, somewhere, that is yours. But for now, this general letter will have to do. So here goes.

Dear All Ya’ll,

Thank you.

For me this wasn’t just a chance to come back and be onstage. It wasn’t even simply a chance to come back for the sake of the good ol’ days. It was an opportunity to return and represent the Masque, demonstrate what a terribly important role this theatre and all of you involved took in my life.

Over eight years of my life is in this place, and what the Masque is, what it offered, and what it continues to be inside of me is something that I will never lose. The Masque has grown beyond a name, a building, a theatre, a place to… hang; it has evolved into an idea, an active passion, a source of creative and personal growth and ideals. It represents a milestone in my life and a greater part of who I am today. What the Masque is on any grand scale is indefinable, because within each of us the Masque is something irreplaceably unique.

The Masque is not a training ground for professional theatre. It’s not a program made to ready people for a future career in the arts. The Masque is a community larger than that established to instill an appreciation, respect, and love for who we are as people and to strengthen the relationships we have with others through art as we develop our own creative sensibility.

The Masque gives students an opportunity to discover what there is to love about not only the theatre, but also working and interacting and growing along side others on a regular basis. It gives them a chance to fully realize themselves.

At it’s best, the Masque is the one and only venue for youth to come together and collaborate creatively and freely as they struggle through the most overwhelmingly developmental stage of their lives. The Masque is freedom of expression and exploration. The Masque isn’t just a home away from home, it is the very foundation of my person.

The fact that I can return, nearly two years after my involvement at the Masque had come to its initial end, and discover the relationships I have with all of you have not only remained consistent and meaningful, but have even strengthened over time, is a true testament to the unmatchable lasting power of this place and what it means to us all. Our experience here has become a common unfailing bond, and while I cannot speak for all of you, the theatre and you all will stay most certainly forever and ever in my heart.

I can say with great honesty and ease that I love all of you. And I am forever grateful that you have all taken these central, involved, and intimate roles in my life. I am proud of the show we have put together and am already sorry that it must come to an end. Best of luck to you all as we go our separate ways once more and here’s to getting us all back together again in the future, in some form or another. You think I’m making this up because I was invited to do the alumni show and I have to be nice. I could do that. I could put on an act for you all and say a lot of things without being very sincere, but this time I am. I am talking to you sincerely. Thank you.